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Ottoman Cuisine

Ottoman Cuisine
Ottoman CuisineSupplied

Good Food hat15.5/20

Turkish$$$

Some things just get taken for granted. Like the fact that Serif and 'Gucci' Kaya have been playing host to Canberra's great and (not always) good for several decades. Then again, there's a polish to the performances in their mostly modern dining room, housed in a peaceful pavilion not far from the parliamentary circle, that's at once reassuring and pleasantly exciting. And while Turkish is the Kayas's focus and heritage, this is far from kebabs-and-dips dining. The flavours and inspirations of Istanbul are here, in a gorgeous claypot of sliced sucuk (spiced Turkish sausage) with oregano, sweet tomato, a coddled egg and a whack of Aleppo chilli, or via a scallop-and-eggplant stack - moussaka-like - with the smoky squish of taramasalata. Salmon with spinach, pine nuts and an almond tarator is equally luxurious. The chefs' hand with dolma (the art of stuffing and wrapping) turns tradition into art on the plate, as in elegant kofte-mince-stuffed eggplant rounds in a light yoghurt sauce. This Ottoman empire rules, OK.

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